Eliminate the Variables, Part II

This post is about a few more details from yesterday's post.  What is a good diet?  One without anything artificial, without sugar or fructose (HFCS), anything that is processed, and without added chemicals.  And if you can get organic, better still.  Again, Dr. Mercola's site goes into more detail on these things.  Since starting this type of diet, food actually tastes better, and by eliminating most or all of the above variables, my health has improved drastically.

What else should you do?  READ all labels.  Whether it's food or supplements.  There was an excellent sounding supplement that I was ready to try.....until I looked at the label, specifically the other ingredients.  In the other ingredients there are several items that have been implicated as possible carcinogens - now, maybe they will turn out to be OK, but why take that chance?  There is one ingredient that is supposed to give you the listed benefit, so why add all those other things that have no added benefit?  Might some of those ingredients get stored in your body, and add up over the years until it reaches some dangerous level?  They are all more variables - why would you add them...you want to eliminate all these variables.  By the way, this is a list of those variables:  Mannitol, Natural and Artificial Mint Flavors, Sucralose, Silicon Dioxide, Stearic Acid, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Magnesium Stearate, Titanium Dioxide (color), Natural Glaze, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Triethyl Citrate, Citric Acid, BHT, Mono and Diglycerides, Polysorbate 80.  At least 15 ingredients that do nothing good for you, and may cause harm.  The only ingredient that it is being sold for is anatabine citrate, so why not have just that ingredient, along with perhaps a few supporting nutrients?

I think that covered what I wanted to pass along today - and remember, "He who has health, has hope.  And who has hope, has everything."  Well, Here's to Your Health (that was the name of my vitamin supplement store).

Now, back to photography.  What is the difference between a professional taking your pictures and you taking the pictures - after all, with the camera technology today, you will have trouble getting a bad exposure.  Well, there is too much to discuss here today, but the best way is to look at professionally done photography compared to non-professionally done photography.  Both have their place and benefits.  There are many day to day events in people's lives that can't be captured by a professional (unless he or she lived with you and followed you everywhere - not very practical), and then there are beautifully done artistic images that only a professional will capture.  Below are some samples of photos that were shot by a professional, or by a family member - they both have their place, and I am happy to have both, as they are of my parents, and also a cousin.

The above two photos had a surface texture which caused problems while scanning.  They were taken, most likely, over 60 years ago.  The photo on the left is of my cousin, also taken around 60 years ago.













And finally, one more photo to stare at if you're in the middle of a heat wave - in another four months or so, you may be out in something that looks like this, depending on location.

Eliminate the Variables and Stay Cool

I thought this would be a good title, but what does it mean?  It would depend on what you're talking about.  On this blog I talk about health and photography.  Health, because it can and will affect how good your images will turn out - after all, if you or the photographer are feeling a bit under the weather, your pictures will probably not be as good as if you were feeling absolutely great.  Your health is a variable (made up of hundreds of other variables, some of which I'll get into here and on other posts), and one variable that you can eliminate (or come close to eliminating) by eating right, exercising, taking the right supplements, and having the right attitude about life.  These are things you can control.  Another large variable related to your health is any drugs you take, as the side effects can affect your mood, energy, and your over-all health.  For more information about drugs, please go to Mercola.com .

In photography, variables (and I know I won't list them all) include such things as exposure, composition, depth of field, posing, styling, make-up, lighting, post processing, and of course, your health.  And let's not forget anticipation and timing in capturing that instant when you look your absolute best.  As the saying goes, timing is everything.

Without making this post too long, I think you can see how, if you eliminate most of the above variables, you will get the images you wanted, and probably better.  You probably never realized you could, or did, look so good, as when everything goes perfect.  That is my goal.

I learned photography shooting film, and sometimes Polaroid (which was quite expensive) so every exposure  needed to be perfect.  I've learned to eliminate the variables with my photography, and also with my health.

In a prior post, I mentioned posting some ice pictures (many of these were shot years ago, on film which has since color shifted or faded - I did what I could in Photoshop and Lightroom, but too much information was missing from the original, but here they are) - These were taken in Ithaca, NY - it was somewhere around 15 degrees out, I was not able to shoot with my gloves on, so my poor fingers were like icicles!  The branches covered in ice were a result of a nearby waterfall throwing out a mist that then froze on the branches.  Makes me glad I live in Southern California now!

Below is a cloud of ice passing by - Brrrrrrrrrr.  Actually, as in the photo above, the images are upside down, and are reflections in a stream, above, and a pond, below.

I hope you enjoyed these, especially if you are currently experiencing a heat wave.  I feel cooler already.

GMO Foods and more Sunsets

This post was going to be a continuation of Sunsets, but first a word about GMO "foods."  Please check this link, and don't forget about the GMO labeling requirement initiative on the November ballot in California (and perhaps other states):  http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v08n25.shtml.  Not sure whether this is worse, or if fluoridation is, as new studies show reduced IQ's in children exposed to fluoride in drinking water.  http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/12/fluoride-and-the-brain-no-margin-of-safety.aspx

Now, on to brighter things - hope you enjoy some more sunsets.  Don't forget, you can click on the photos to see them in a larger size.

I believe I shot the above one in Santa Barbara.

The above Sunset was taken in Summerland, CA.  One of my favorite beaches.

Shot in Santa Monica from Palisades Park, near the base of Montana Avenue.

Venice Beach, CA.

Santa Monica, CA

Smoke drifting over the ocean from fires in Malibu.

Venice Beach, California.

Taken from the top of the hill on 2nd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA

Summerland, CA

I think this may be from Santa Monica Pier, although could be Summerland, too.

Hope you've enjoyed these Sunsets (all taken with film, and later scanned and run through Lightroom).  Also hope you read those links, and try to take charge of your health by becoming aware of the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Sunsets

I was over at Jasmine Star's blog, and there was talk about sunsets - specifically, who has the best ones - where they are.  Some were saying the East Coast (U.S.) and some the West Coast, and still others were arguing for somewhere in between.  Also, Alaska was mentioned, as well as some other places.  Well, as I said on my Facebook page, and quoted from an old saying, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."  Because this is primarily a photography blog (with some health related topics from time to time), and beauty is a component of photography, and one which I enjoy the most (sunsets, women, flowers, mountains, etc), I will be posting, for the most part, my interpretation of beauty through my images.  I will leave pictures of war, suffering, sadness, and related images for others who specialize in that and therefore would do a much better job at it than would I.

With the above explanation, here are some of my past sunsets (as always, these pictures have been reduced in size and so may not be as sharp as the originals:

The above photo was shot years ago with Nikon FTn on film, which deteriorated over time, but I think this is one time when the passage of time may have improved the image, or at least made it more artistic.  This was taken at Rincon, CA.  The five photos below are some more from that series.  The photo that is a bit more gray was one that had been printed, and a scan made from that, so not much in the way of color shifting or degradation.

And this last photo - shot on the East Coast (I believe at Captree on Long Island, NY) with a small box camera (Daci camera, made in Germany), probably taken in the late 1950's or early 1960's with 120 size film.  Negative color shifted and faded, but here it is.  Still not bad.

I will be adding some more sunsets in my next post, and then get on to some other things.  I hope you found this enjoyable, and realize it really doesn't matter where a beautiful sunset occurs - it is still a beautiful sunset.